'El Duque' dynamite in Sox debut

Orlando Hernandez gave the White Sox's taxed bullpen a breather Friday night with some help from the breathing room Aaron Rowand provided him.

Rowand hit a two-run homer in the sixth inning that allowed the Sox to pull away for a 5-1 victory over three-time defending American League Central champion Minnesota.

Hernandez, in his first Sox start, provided a calming effect in front of a sellout crowd of 48,764 at the Metrodome.

Throwing from different angles at speeds as slow as 53 m.p.h., Hernandez kept the Twins from mounting a major rally over seven innings.

The Twins' lone run off Hernandez came on Jason Bartlett's opposite-field flare double in the third.

This was the performance general manager Ken Williams and manager Ozzie Guillen envisioned when they signed "El Duque" to a two-year, $8 million contract despite Hernandez's age (35) and the fact he missed the first half of 2004 while recovering from right shoulder surgery.

Hernandez scattered six hits and retired the final seven battersthe last two on strikeouts.

He threw an 87-m.p.h. fastball past Luis Rivas and then snapped a curve by him for a strikeout to end the seventh.

Hernandez's effort came after Guillen used all six relievers in Thursday's 11-inning loss to Cleveland.

The Sox have received at least six innings from their starting pitchers in all four games this season.

Hernandez was locked in a pitchers' duel with Kyle Lohse until the sixth. Paul Konerko snapped a 1-1 tie with a 427-foot home run, his second of the season, with one out.

The Sox were 3-for-20 with runners in scoring position when Rowand came to the plate. He was 1-for-14 and had grounded into an inning-ending double play with Carl Everett on second in the fourth.

But Rowand made up for his slow start when he ripped a 2-1 pitch well over the left-field fence to extend the Sox's lead to 4-1.

The Sox added another run in the seventh when they reverted to their small-ball ways. Scott Podsednik legged out an infield hit, stole second and scored when Everett legged out a double.

Dustin Hermanson, who pitched one inning Thursday, hurled the final two to secure the victory.

In a quirky twist, Guillen elected to give Willie Harris his first start of the season at second base.

Harris' start came at the expense of Tadahito Iguchi, who was 3-for-4 in Thursday's loss to Cleveland and seems more comfortable with each at-bat.

But Guillen stressed he wanted to keep his reserves sharp, stating he was merely repeating a routine he followed last year.

Guillen added he was considering giving reserve infielder Pablo Ozuna his first start in left field in Sunday night's series finale.

Harris went 2-for-5, including a single in the first. Everett followed with a drive to the alley in left center, where the ball hit the palm of Shannon Stewart's outstretched glove but bounced out for a double to score Harris.